A Charming Day in Hell
by Ermie
Summary: [PG for some language] Emma is a good witch living in the same world as the Charmed Ones. The Charmed Ones are celebrities of the Wiccan world, so when Emma and her friends run into trouble -- she must hope that the Charmed Ones will help! PLEASE REVIEW
1. Fits of Temper

[A/N:  Hello!  Okay, disclaimer is that I don't own this world or the characters of Piper, Prue, Phoebe, Paige, Leo, Cole, etc etc.. I DID create Emma and her whitelighter Thomas.  They coexist in the same world as the Charmed Ones...  Enjoy and please please please REVIEW!]

Part 1:  Fits of Temper

"Get off my property, SCUM!" Emma grabbed the nearest object and flung it with every bit of strength she could muster.  A loud _thwock_ sounded as the heel of the shoe connected with the dirty rat's elbow.

"OW!  Bloody _hell_, that hurt!!!" he screeched back, scampering off her lawn with his pants in his hands.  

"I HATE YOU!" she screamed into the quiet night, not caring a whit about what the neighbors would whisper to each other the next morning.  She slammed the door shut and began making her way furiously around the room, gathering up all the little articles of clothing that he'd left behind.  

"Dirty rat _bastard!_" she muttered under her breath, grabbing his sock and a shoe from underneath the couch.  

"FILTHY!"  A shirt, flung over the top of the television set. 

"Can't _believe_ him." She was winding down now, out of breath and plagued by a thundering pulse.  Glaring down at the pile of clothes she'd gathered, she felt one more spurt of rage and kicked them into the fireplace with passion.

"Done yet?" a mild voice inquired from the hallway.  Emma glanced up and exhaled loudly, nodding her head.

"Tol--"

"Wait!" Emma held her hand up, stopping his words as they came.  "_Don't_ say I told you so, Thomas... or I'll... I'll..." she glanced around until her gaze fell on a crystal vase.  With a motion of her hand, she summoned it.  "I'll throw it at you, I swear."

Thomas grinned easily, holding his hands up in surrender.  "Wasn't going to say it," he assured her.  His gentle manner had a calming effect.  Emma sighed, put the crystal vase down, and fell into the sofa - only moments before, the scene of some hot and heavy "action."

"What happened?" she finally asked, leaning her head back on the soft pillow cushions.  Thomas made his way gingerly over the broken bits and pieces of glass - remnants of a shattered picture frame - and sat down beside her, stroking her long tangled black hair.

"Guess he got tired of waiting," Thomas answered gently.  "He must've drugged you up at the club.  I was watching when you guys came back and he didn't do it then."  Emma snuggled into Thomas' strong arms and drew in a shuddering breath.

"Are you positive it was a drug?  Not... not magic, right?  I mean.. if Jake was a demon, I'd be more than glad to vanquish him by all means..." Emma sniffled quietly, bravely trying to hide her hurt feelings.

"No, he wasn't a demon.  Just a... normal, everyday jerk."  Thomas sighed.  "I'm sorry I didn't get here sooner but I thought... well, I didn't know what to think, really..."  Emma's lips curved into a tiny smile. 

"You were embarrassed, weren't you?  Caught me doing something you didn't want to see?"  she teased him lightly, laughing at the picture of Thomas - trying to avert his eyes.

"Well I didn't know until I saw your eyes.  Then I knew something was wrong..." Thomas stood up and glanced around.  "Looks like you have some cleaning up to do."  Emma looked around and sighed, nodding.  Her fits of temper usually lead up to a good bit of cleaning.

"Until then, I've got to meet with the Elders, ask them about Jericho.  You haven't seen him today?  At all?"  Emma shook her head, pulling her long black hair into a ponytail.  Her green eyes narrowed.

"You're sure Jake wasn't a demon?"

Thomas laughed and orbed away.   

The cleaning didn't take as long as Emma had expected it to.  All that remained was the picture frame that lay on its side by the couch, where Emma had thrown it earlier.  She picked it up and took a deep breath before looking at the picture inside.

It was a year earlier, when she and Jake had first met in Chicago.  There she was, her tan fading and her bright smile making up for the squint of her eyes as she tried to squeeze out the sun.  And there was Jake.  Breathtakingly gorgeous, her first _real_ romance... He'd been taken in by her diversity.  Born in England, travelling all around the world - including Africa and Antarctica - and finally settling down in bustling Chicago.  Always, he'd ask why she had travelled so much, where she'd gotten the money to finance.  Emma sighed, glancing down at her younger, more naïve self.  Athletic form, petite size, gorgeous hair, slightly freckled skin.  Why couldn't he just take her for who she was?!

She threw the picture into the fire along with his clothes.  Without hesitation, she snapped her fingers and the fire crackled into existence.  How could she tell him that she was a witch - albeit a _good_ witch?!  How could she tell him that she and her whitelighter, Thomas, weren't really _living_ together?  That Thomas would orb her in and out of places all over the world to exclude a travelling fee?  And that her parents had been murdered by a man - a mortal... and that her wealth came from their insurance policy...

Well, maybe the last bit was share-able.  But Emma hardened.  No one had to know.  She hated pity above all things.  She couldn't picture herself telling someone about her parents' murders in order to get sympathy and understanding.  It made her angry just thinking about it.

Emma shoved her parents' memories out of her mind.  

Pouring herself a glass of wine, she settled herself before the fire in her favorite chair.  In the past weeks, Jake had pushed her more and more.  She should've seen it coming.  Her skin crawled.  How could he?  _HOW COULD HE?_  Was the truth so important to him that he'd _drug_ her for it?!  And then, in her vulnerable state... attempt to rape her?!  Disgusted, Emma drained the rest of her wine and summoned the wine bottle to her from the cabinet.  

She couldn't remember anything though.  Just the club - and then, after Thomas had "cleared" her mind by healing it, Jake's face twisted into some grotesque smile as he tore her clothing...  Pouring herself some more wine, Emma pushed that picture from her mind as well.  It was over and Jake wouldn't remember a thing.

If it wasn't for her powers, she'd be in a lot of hell.  _If it wasn't for my powers, I wouldn't BE here in the first place_, Emma thought ironically.  Her powers manifested in several ways, but they were largely one ability branching out into many.  Ever since she was little, she'd had an overwhelming psychokinetic ability to get into peoples' thoughts.  As she learned more about magic and the wiccan craft, she shaped her power into a useful tool.  At each stage, her magical powers expanded.  First, she could listen to thoughts.  Next, she could manipulate the thoughts of others.  Then, she learned to erase memories, implant memories.  Finally, just a year earlier, she'd managed to create illusions and false realities in the minds of her enemies.  In a small room, she could even manage to become invisible, by creating the illusion of empty space where she stood.  

Of course, she'd have to perfect that.  She had to learn how to create details and believable illusions, for several people all at once, in order for that to be really useful. 

Recently, her psychokinetic ability had graduated to enable her to move objects without touching them.  It was her newest power, so Emma used it every chance she got.  

The phone rang, disturbing her thoughts.  Emma considered summoning it to her, but she remembered that there were no cordless phones in this house.  Antique and furnished completely, it had been a bargain because of the rumors of a ghost that cursed the dwellers.  Emma had taken care of that, no problem.  

"Hello, Emma here."  

"Dear Emma.  You've been well, I suppose?"  An articulated voice came over the line, oozing with charm and gentlemanliness.

"Oh, hello Jericho," she answered, her tone flat.  "Why in the world are you _calling_ me?" she demanded.  Demons rarely used _phones_.

"Thought it'd be best to keep my distance.  Heard you whip up a smashing good Fergie potion, y'know."

Emma rolled her eyes.  Jericho was a slippery one and his friendly, gentlemanly ways were slightly off-putting.  It was best if she kept her cynicism and anger firmly between them.  "If you'd disappear with a simple Fergie potion, I'd be crowned Queen of England tomorrow.  Listen Jericho, I've had a bad day of it myself.  Would you mind telling me what you want, exactly?"

"Just this, old friend.  I'll be doing some work uptown tomorrow, a lovely couple celebrating their anniversary is about to meet its end.  Would you like to do something about it?"  

"You're up to something, aren't you?"  Emma toyed with the stem of her wine glass.  Jericho offering up information about his whereabouts?  Never.

"Not at all!  Would I use such a dismal situation to set you up?  We're good friends now, I'd do you the honor of _at least_ a gathering of twenty people or so."

"I'm delighted," she answered, her annoyance creeping into her voice.  "Look, I don't know what you're up to, but obviously you're having a great time setting it up.  Whatever it is, I won't give you the pleasure of my company, trust me on that one."

"What're you going to do then?  Set Laurie on me?"  Emma froze.  Something in Jericho's tone warned her.  He was excited about something... and it had to do with Laurie.

"No.  Why, do you miss her?  Fancy a date?" Emma played along, hoping to get some more hints.

"Oh, charmed I'm sure.  Fact is, I've got myself a date already... see you soon, Em!"  The line went dead.


	2. Three AM Wake Up Call

Part 2:  Three A.M. Wake Up Call

In a rash move, Emma grabbed her wine glass and emptied it angrily into the fire.  The alcohol was consumed instantly, the fire blazed out of control for a moment.  Taken aback, Emma snapped her fingers again and the fire died away.

The power to control fire.  It had been her father's power.  

Sobered a bit, she grabbed the phone again and dialed the police.  

"Chicago Police, Sergeant Adams speaking."

"Hello, this is Emma Ashton.  Is it possible for you to trace a call that's just been made to my house?" 

"Might take a little work, Ms. Ashton.  Is there a problem?"

"Yes, some maniac called me a few minutes ago and I'd like to stop him if at all possible."

"We can call up the phone company and have a list of recently received calls and their numbers, but there's a good chance it's a pay phone or some unlisted number."

"That's all right.  I'd just feel great if you could get on that for me Sergeant Adams.  Oh, and can you please tell Detective Gregson to call me back with the information?  I've got to discuss something with him."

"No problem at all Ms. Ashton."

"Thank you so much."  Emma hung up, feeling slightly more in control.  Then, putting on her soft leather jacket, she stepped outside and got into her car.  _Laurie better be sleeping.  I hope I wake her up and she yells at me and calls me a complete idiot for checking up on her.  Please, please..._

She screeched into the street and headed for Laurie's house.

"What in the world are you _doing_ here, Em?!  It's THREE IN THE FSCKING MORNING!  Are you absolutely insane?!"  Laurie's voice buzzed through the intercom, sending shivers of relief through Emma's spine.  She leaned wearily into the button and said, "Just let me up, I'll explain."

The gate clicked and Emma entered through the ornate ironwrought archways into Laurie's huge house.  Not typical for Chicago, but Laurie was not typically rich.  Emma waited for Laurie to open the beautiful wood polished door with golden trimmings.  _Real gold, I bet_.  Nope, Laurie was _filthy_ rich.  The door swung open and there was Laurie in all her splendor.  A white silken robe clung to her curvy beautiful figure, her blonde hair was perfect and her skin creamy and smooth.  Her blue eyes flashed with anger though.

Emma winced.  "Look, it's just that... I got this call from Jericho and--"

"You woke me up for _JERICHO_?!"  Laurie screeched, her voice rising a few notches.  Emma winced again.  "Luke and the kids are sleeping and you_ ring_ that godforsaken bell, risk waking the baby up... and ALL THIS FOR JERICHO?!"  Laurie paused.  "He called you?"  she asked, slightly confused.  Emma nodded.

"Look, can I come in and have some coffee or something?  I have ... some stuff to tell you." 

Something in her tone of voice must've frightened Laurie, because she leapt back and ushered her best friend through the doors and into the kitchen where she immediately put a pot of water on the stove for tea.

"Coffee, please," Emma pleaded.  

"Tea's better for you," Laurie recited.  It was a familiar argument.  She sat down on the island table in the middle of the enormous kitchen and took Emma's brown, tanned hands in her own pale ones.

"What happened?"

She inhaled deeply and stared down at the tabletop, tracing one of the patterns with her unpolished fingernail.  "Well, for starters... Jake's an unbelievable twit," she muttered fiercely.

"Oh no, you fought?" Laurie asked, rising to get the teacups out.

"No, I guess you could say... I dumped him."  Emma raised her head.  "Effectively," she added with a businesslike nod.  Laurie rushed over to her side and gave her a warm hug.

"Why?"  This question launched Emma into an hour long tirade during which they sipped lots of tea and had to pause once to allow Laurie to tend to her small child who had awakened.  Emma helped herself to a biscuit and waited.  Then, something caught her eye.  

Newspaper clippings.  A case in San Fransisco had police baffled - a murderer, equally consistent and uncapturable, gone.  The reporter, obviously in an effort to make his story more entertaining, had pulled out several cases which had similar conclusions.  Unsolved, mysterious, and yet... all the culprits were gone.  Unapprehended, never heard from again.

"There, there..." Laurie was back, her tiny newborn in her arms.  "I think he's hungry," she whispered, heading to the fridge to retrieve some milk formula.

"What's all this?" Emma asked, pointing at the clippings.

"Oh, you saw them.  Well, I've been researching a lot on the internet and I came across a number of odd cases from San Fransisco.  I kept reading and I can't help but think..." Laurie glanced at the stairway, checking for her husband.  A mortal.  

"Can't help but think witches are involved?" Emma finished for her, reading some of the other articles.

"Well, it sounds about right.  I mean... the articles that come out in the paper about the demons you and I have vanquished all look similar to those.  And it even seems like those witches have an insider on the police force - look!"  Laurie pointed at a particular article about a seemingly innocent man being locked up in a cell under the authority of a certain Detective Darryl Morris.  The man was now filing a law suit for illegal arrest and seizure.

"Well, we're certainly more careful than _they_ are," Emma observed, tucking the article away.  "Why are you so interested in this?"  

Laurie let her baby settle into the crook of her arm and gave him the bottle.  "Well, it's about Jericho, actually.  I was thinking... neither of us are powerful enough to take this guy on.  He's really high up there on the heirarchy of demons, you know.  I think one of the main contenders for the position of the Source after he was destroyed."

"Yeah, and?"  Emma prompted, slightly annoyed at the thought that she wasn't powerful enough for a lousy demon.  

"Well I thought if we could find the witches that were responsible for the vanquishing of the Source, maybe they'd help us out.  I mean, Jericho's the worst kind of demon... feeding on peoples' sadistic tendencies and all.  They're _sure_ to want to help us, don't you think?"  Laurie smiled eagerly, her teeth perfect and pearly white.

Emma wondered sourly if she had remembered to brush all day.  "You're talking about... the Charmed Ones," she concluded.  "You want to find and contact the Charmed Ones?  Are you crazy?"

The smile fell from Laurie's face.  "Why, what's wrong with it?"

"The _Charmed Ones_, Laurie.  Think about it!  They're _famous_, they're incredibly powerful, they're practically ICONS in the wiccan world.  It's like... trying to contact Brad Pitt, for heaven's sake.  We can't just stroll into some building and ask the secretary if we can have an appointment with the Charmed Ones, can we?!  Every single demon out there is gunning for them -- don't you think they'd be REALLY well hidden?"

 "Just an idea," Laurie replied sullenly.  "I thought maybe we could use a spell.  You know, _Call Like Spirits_ or something like that."

Emma rolled her eyes, ready to dismiss it.  She congratulated herself on being the brainy one of the two, at least she had _that_ going for her.  "Absolutely not!  A spell to summon the Charmed Ones would work about as well as a spell to summon the ..." she trailed off once her brain started clicking.  Actually... it might work.  Emma hated to admit it, especially after the smug thoughts that had paraded across her mind moments earlier, but Laurie _could be onto something_. 

"Do you have that spell somewhere?  A calling for like spirits?"

It was Laurie's turn to roll her eyes.  "Yeah, I have it in the recipe book, just a sec," she retorted.  "Of course not, idiot.  You think I want Luke to find something like that lying about?  'Hey honey, what's this recipe for?  Dragon's tail, eye of newt..'  I can just see it."  Laurie sighed heavily and burped her child.

"All right, all right.  Lay off the sarcasm, it's 4 in the morning.  That spell might work if I change a few words... let me go see if I have it in the ol' recipe box.  Look, I'm sorry to have woken you and everything.  Thanks for the tea."  Emma kissed Laurie on the cheek, pat the little baby on the head, and rushed out the door.


	3. Jericho, the bastard

Part 3:  Jericho, the bastard.

"Shit." The phone was ringing and Emma couldn't find her house key.  She stared at her key ring, dumbfounded.  Where the hell did that key go?!  She kicked the door in her frustration and then turned away from it calling, "Thomas!!!  Thomas, can yo--"  Her words stopped short when she found herself with company.

"Ms. Ashton.  Pleasure to meet you," a stout, bald man bowed low.  When he looked up, his eyes flashed red.  His grin showed off an impressive set of razor sharp teeth.

"Hello," she answered, edgy.  She quickly scanned the area to see if there were more.

"Just us," the demon assured.  "I come bearing a message from your friend Laurie."  Emma tensed.  

"What?  I was just there, what do you mean?"  The demon grinned horribly and nodded.

"Yes, I know.  I watched you leave."  His eyes flickered red again and this time Emma saw that it was fire reflected from within.  She prepared herself to fight and set up an illusion, but the demon lifted his finger and she paused.

"Don't even try.  I share your ability to read minds, I'm afraid.  The message is this."  The demon opened his mouth and an unearthly scream sounded, heart stopping in its similarity to Laurie's voice.  Then, smiling, he continued to speak using Laurie's voice.  "You know what to do, Emma.  Find the Charmed Ones.  Vanquish Jericho."

Unspeakable anger filled her throat.  "What did you do to her?" Emma demanded through clenched teeth.  As she spoke these words, she formed a hot fireball in her right hand.  The demon only continued to bare his unsightly teeth.  Emma tried again.  "You're working for Jericho?  What does he _want_?"

"Nothing but your presence tomorrow morning at a... particular _ceremony_ he'll be holding.  Your friend Laurie will be there and if you don't show up, she'll take part in the festivities, if you get my meaning."

"Tomorrow morning - where."  Emma desperately fought the bile that kept climbing into her mouth.  

"Jones Square Plaza, building 349.  Basement."  The demon bowed low and, before Emma could throw the fireball into him, vanished.  

"Oh no.  Laurie.." Emma choked back a sob, fumbling to reach for her cellphone.  As the line rang, she took a steadying breath and called out, "Thomas!  Thomas!!  I need you!"  

A soft blue light shimmered to the ground beside her and solidified into her whitelighter's form.  She fell into his arms and shuddered, still clutching the phone to her ear.

"Em. Wh-what's going on?"  he asked, his face bewildered.

"Where in the world _were_ you?!  I called you and you didn't-- oh, yes, hello?  Is Detective Gregson there?  Yes, tell him it's Emma Ashton - it's urgent.  Yes, I'll hold.. thank you."  She placed the phone against her cheek and gripped Thomas' arm. 

"They've taken Laurie.  Where were you?!" 

"Oh no, I'm sorry..." Thomas leaned in and hugged Emma.  "We'll get her back.  I was speaking to the Elders about Jericho like I said I would."  His eyes betrayed his thoughts, she didn't even have to probe.  

"And..?" she asked, fearful for the first time that night.

"He'll be practically indestructible if we wait until after tomorrow," Thomas began.

"The ceremony!"  Emma gasped, nearly dropping her phone.  A voice sounded in her ear.  "Just a sec, Thomas - can you orb inside and open the door?  I think I lost my keys."  Thomas orbed out and soon the door was clicking open.  Emma stepped inside, collapsing on the couch.

"Ms. Ashton?  Is there a problem?" the detective's warm voice inquired, mildly curious.  "It's 4 in the morning, you realize that Em?" 

"I'm fully aware of that Rich - what are you still doing at the station?!" Emma summoned the wine glass toward her again and poured herself a liberal amount.  

"You know.  Detective work," he replied wryly.  "I called you back ten minutes ago about the phone trace but you didn't answer."

Emma sat up, her wine glass forgotten on the table.  "Well?  Anything interesting?"

"Well... you said the call was placed directly before you called the station, right?"  Rich's voice was hesitant.

"Yeah I called you right after."

"Well... the phone records indicate that you didn't receive any calls since 11pm tonight, which is odd... You should either have an unlisted number, an error-reading the line, or _something_ that says you had a call..."

"Rich, are you sitting down?"

"Yes...." Emma heard the squeaking of a chair as Rich settled into his seat.  "And there's no one around you, is there?"

"Just a second."  Emma heard a few muffled words and then the sound of a door closing.

"Go ahead."

"It was Jericho."  She waited.

".. .. .. Jericho knows how to use the _phone_??" Rich asked, incredulous.  Nodding, Emma filled him in on the night's events.  Thomas listened in.

"So.  I don't know what to do Rich.  I'm worried."  Emma rarely admitted she was beyond her depth, it pained her to do so.  There were a few moments of silence.

"I could try to contact that Darryl Morris in San Francisco if you'd like.  See if he knows anything about the Charmed Ones... I wish I had their names."

"Maybe Thomas could..." Emma looked up hopefully, but Thomas firmly shook his head NO.  She frowned.  "Hold on a second Rich."  She put the phone down for a minute and glared at Thomas.  "What do you mean NO?  Don't you think the Elders would help you on this?  Can't you search the whitelighters for the Charmed Ones?!"

Sighing, Thomas joined her on the couch.  "Look... don't you think there are thousands of witches out there every day that need help of some sort?  The Charmed Ones aren't meant to be superwitches.  They need their time and they have their own demons to deal with.  Supernatural and not."  His voice was soft and calm, as it usually was when he explained a "whitelighter" matter such as this.

"But... this is an _emergency_, Thomas!  Jericho is a powerful demon - the more people he feeds on, the more he'll grow in strength.  It'll only be a matter of time before he targets the Charmed Ones anyway.  Can't you at least ask?" Emma begged, her heart in her eyes.  Laurie was one of the most important people in the world to her.

"I'll ask.  But it's the best I can do.  The Elders have their own laws that even us whitelighters can't understand sometimes."  Thomas orbed and left Emma alone with the phone.

"Rich?  Did you hear that?"  she asked.

"Why what a surprise.  Ms. Ashton, how delightful."

It was like a cold iron pressing deep into her heart.  She breathed in deeply and tried to calm her thundering heart before saying coolly, "Jericho."


	4. More Whitelighters Please

Part 4:  More Whitelighters Please!

Emma suddenly wished she hadn't sent Thomas away.  Taking a deep breath, she gripped the phone tighter and switched it to her other ear.  In doing so, she missed Jericho's first words.

"... 're doing well.  I just thought I'd, oh... _call_ and see how you were."  She suddenly could not _stand_ the way his smug voice simply oozed with charm.  Emma felt the situation shift out of her control again and her first reaction - as always - was anger.

"Listen Jericho, you piece of demon trash.  What are you doing with Laurie.. and WHERE did you take Detective Gregson?!"  she nearly growled at him through the phone.  "He's just an innocent!"

"Oh no no, dear friend.  I know he's a warlock... a rather powerful one at that."  He paused and Emma could just picture his pretentious smile.  "You just keep leading me straight to them, don't you?"  he continued, his tone the model of friendliness.

"_Leading _you to... wh-what?  I never--" 

"Oh sorry Emma hun, but it seems I'll have some unwanted company shortly.  I _do _so hate it when they drop by unexpectedly, don't you?"  _The nerve!!_ Emma fumed.  He actually sounded like he was bordering on _laughter!_  She seethed in fury, but before she could say a word, Jericho quickly went on.  "It actually slipped my mind earlier... I can't believe how forgetful I can be sometimes.  I had to tell you, the _party_ tomorrow morning will start at 10 AM.  SHARP."  At his last word, his voice went flat and cold.   Emma flared up.

"YOU ARE KIDDING YOURSELF IF YOU THIN--"  Her sentence was cut short when she heard a commotion over the line.  Several men were shouting, there was a sound of crashing wood, a single gunshot... and silence.  Stunned, Emma gasped and waited.

"Hello, who's there?" a masculine voice demanded.  "Hello?!"

Shakily drawing her breath, Emma slowly clicked the phone down onto its receiver.  She was positive that Jericho had not been harmed in the little scuffle she'd overheard.  He wasn't that easy to get rid of, not by a long shot.  At least the police officer was okay.  

Not knowing what else to do, she stood up and paced the room.  Calling for Thomas had no effect - he had the bad habit of ignoring her sometimes.  Not that he was inattentive... Emma had sometimes called him for unimportant things.  She bit her lip and wished she hadn't called wolf so many times.

"Thomas, I really need you... Can you hear me?"  her voice quavered this time.  She sank into her couch and tried to sort her racing thoughts.

_Think like the clear-minded, responsible witch you are!!!_  _This is no time for hysterics._  Emma tried to set things straight.  Tomorrow morning, she'd have to show up at the ceremony or Jericho might do something horrible to Laurie or Rich.  A knot of rage had settled into her stomach, as if it was going to reside there permanently.  _Good._ _Hold onto the anger.  It'll make you want to KILL Jericho more.._  Tying her long hair into a tight bun, Emma settled on the plush carpet in front of the fireplace and arranged herself into meditation position.  

The flames roaring, Emma cleared her mind and tried to picture her situation.  Having psychokinetic powers had allowed her to develop strength of meditation and clear thought.  The situation was clear.  She'd have to find the Charmed Ones.  With Laurie and Rich, she had thought she had a chance to defeat Jericho... but alone, she had to admit, it was impossible.  But finding the Charmed Ones would prove difficult.  Especially if she wanted to be there on time for the "ceremony," whatever it was.  She simply _had_ to be at the ceremony, Charmed Ones or not.  In which case, she had to have a plan to save her friends at the very least.  Once her friends were out of harm's way, they could develop a spell or potion to vanquish Jericho.

And so little time to accomplish it all in.  It was... 5 am now.  She had to be at Jones Square Plaza by ten.  Now, if she could only think of the best way to contact the Charmed Ones.  Emma focused all her mental abilities on the idea of locating the Charmed Ones.  

Suddenly, something very odd happened.  A picture of a stranger's face floated into her vision, lingered there a moment, and disappeared.  Emma opened her eyes, disturbed.  Was this a new growth of her power??

"EMMA!  EM, are you okay?!"  Thomas' voice shattered all concentration and she lost the picture entirely.  Leaping up from her sitting position, Emma launched herself at Thomas, throwing a punch at his arm.  

Startled, Thomas separated himself from her and stared at her.  "What's gotten into you?!"

"Where the hell WERE you?!" she cried, furious.  "If you had _been_ here, you could've orbed me to the police station and we could have captured Jericho!!!"  She punched him a few more times.  And she _knew_ she could punch.

"Ow, will you _stop_ that?!  EM!  Stop!  Calm down!"  Thomas' strong hands gripped her arms tightly and he held her at a distance.  "Listen to me."  His voice took on that soothing quality again and he asked, "If you _had_ captured Jericho... what would you have done with hiM?  You're not powerful enough to take him on alone, you know that."  Knowing he was right, Emma slumped her shoulders and turned away from him.

"He said I led him to Rich," she said, her voice shaking slightly.  She hated this weakness in herself - she was a strong, independent woman.  But the thought that she'd endangered her own close friends... it was just unbearable.  "He's probably right, Thomas.  I should've been more careful.  Rich always told me not to call him by his first name... a-and not to call him at the station so often.  I'm just so careless..." her words trailed off.  Thomas sighed.  

Thinking he was angry with her, Emma nodded her head miserably and buried her face into a sofa cushion.  "I'm an idiot," she sighed.

"No, you're not an idiot."  Thomas sat beside her and took her into his arms.  His strong presence calmed her, like it always did.  "Jericho's a demon," he reminded her gently.  "Evil, remember?  You can't blame yourself for the evil things Jericho's done.  All you can do is be yourself.  A good, smart, responsible, slightly hotheaded witch."  Emma grinned, despite herself. 

"I _do_ have a temper, don't I?"  she admitted, releasing the cushion from her grip.

"You're famous for it," he teased.  "But now you've got to focus on helping Rich and Laurie.  That ceremony Jericho's preparing for - the Elders have told me all about it."

"What?  What is it then?  Is it horrible?"  Emma clenched her jaw and waited for the inevitable truth.  It was always worse than it seemed.

Thomas sighed.  "Jericho's a powerful demon.  But he wants to graduate to a higher level of demon - possibly launch himself into the heirarchy of the Source's confidantes."

"But the Source is dead!" Emma interrupted, confused.

"But someone will take his place.  Someone from the Heirarchy.  Jericho's just one step down.  His ceremony will give him the boost he needs," Thomas said, purposefully vague.

"What, Thomas.  What's he planning for Laurie and Rich?"  She braced herself.

"He's going to kill them and absorb their powers."

There was a moment of tense silence.

Then Emma burst into furious speech.  "WHAT?!  Why do these demons always have to _kill kill kill_?!?!?  WHAT IS IT WITH THEM?!"  She pummeled the couch for a few moments, then stopped herself.  "This isn't doing anything to help Laurie and Rich, is it?" she asked hopelessly.  Thomas shook his head no.  "I really don't understand, Thomas.  Why go through all this trouble to absorb their powers?  Why kill them?"

"Emma, he can't just absorb their powers while they're still alive," Thomas patiently explained.  "As long as they're alive, their powers are intended for _good_.  A demon can still absorb their powers, but ... without the moral influence, it... it works much better."

"Wait so... as long as they're alive, Jericho won't do anything to harm them, right?  As long as they're _alive_, their sense of morality will make their powers insufficient for him?"  Emma gasped.

"Right."

"We just have to get them out of there then!  Why can't we orb in and grab them?"

Thomas hung his head.  "I already tried that.  To save Laurie.  But her whitelighter stopped me.  Seems there's some sort of barrier around Jericho's lair.  Whitelighters can't enter."  He spoke these words softly and waited for their full impact to hit Emma.

Her eyes widened slowly.  "You can't come with me."  He shook his head.  "Then... then how can I get in there?"  He looked up, his eyes hopeful.

"The Charmed Ones-" he started, but Emma interrupted.

"The Charmed Ones?!  I can't find them in time!  This is _impossible_... oh god, what will I DO?!  The Call Like Spirits spell takes _hours_ to brew, I'll never be able to get them here in TIME, I-"

"Emma!  That's what I came to _tell_ you," Thomas said loudly.  He grinned.  "I can't believe this, but the Elders _helped_ me."  

"Are you kidding?!"  Emma leapt up from her seat in excitement.  "Why?!  I thought you said.."

"That's what I thought!  But after I told them about whitelighters being unable to help you get into Jericho's lair, they told me there are witches that can help.  And _then_ they put me into contact with their whitelighter, Leo."

"And he'll take us there, right?  Or bring them here?  Right?"  As ecstatic as she was that the Charmed Ones were going to help save her friends, Emma was also just a _little_ bit excited to be meeting celebrities of the wiccan world.

"You can ask him yourself," Thomas grinned.  He turned his gaze upward and called, "Leo?"

A blue shimmer almost immediately solidified into a human form.  Emma's eyebrow shot up - he was _gorgeous_.  Blond hair, blue eyes, muscular form... She felt Thomas' critical eye on her and snapped herself out of it.

"Hello Emma, it's nice to meet you.  My name's Leo."  He smiled, a bit uncertainly, and extended his hand.  Taking it in her own, Emma shook it firmly, restraining herself from dipping into his thoughts - she felt it was rude to invade like that.

"Hi Leo, I'm SO glad to meet you."


	5. Calling All Charmed Ones

Part 5:  Calling all Charmed Ones

They settled themselves in sofas and chairs as the fire blazed happily in the fireplace.  First, Thomas filled Leo in on all that had occurred in the past 24 hours.  Not wanting to relive it, Emma sat and tried to bring back the image of the face she'd seen during her meditation.  She recalled a very beautiful autumn face - long, flowing brown hair, deep honey almond brown eyes, a compassionate smile, but power - oh so much power - and strength in her gaze.  

"Emma?"  Thomas and Leo were watching her carefully, curious but silent.  Whitelighters were such a rare breed of men, Emma thought.  

"I'm sorry, I was... trying to bring up an image I saw during my meditation.  It was the first time it's ever happened.  I just thought that.. since my mind's been on this problem and its solution, maybe the woman I saw would be able to help somehow."  She described the face she had seen.

"Sounds like Piper," Leo murmured softly.  "We'll know when I bring them here."

"Oh!  You're going to bring the Charmed Ones _here_??!"  Emma exclaimed, unable to hide her excitement. 

Glancing sidelong at Thomas, Leo grinned.  "Well, now that I know the situation here, I'm going to go wake the girls... see if they'd be willing to help."  He hesitated for a moment before continuing.  "Listen.  I want you to understand that I can't guarantee anything.  These girls... well, I'm sure they'll want to help.  But sometimes even they can't do anything.  Especially on such short notice."  

"You mean.. you think they won't come?"  Emma asked, crestfallen.  "But.. maybe if you brought me along and I'd explain to them..."

He looked ready to say no, but then he paused.  A little glint of mischief appeared in his eye.  "If you came along, they'd have a hard time saying no, wouldn't they?"  He almost laughed.  "All right, let's go.  Thomas -- you don't mind staying here, do you?  I think one stranger in the middle of the night is quite enough." 

"No problem.  I'll make sure nothing happens while you're gone."

Leo nodded and held out his hands for Emma to take.  She slipped her hands into his, flashed Thomas a quick grin, and felt the odd tingling sensation that meant they were orbing.

In the next second, they materialized in a darkened room.  Emma could smell the faint fragrance of roses in the air.  She gently probed through the house with her thought and found the three girls upstairs, sleeping.  And - Emma nearly gasped with delight - the world famous baby, Wyatt.  

Leo dropped her hands.  At his movement, Emma quickly withdrew her thought.  The light clicked on, revealing a comfortable, quaintly-decorated living room.  The room exuded a sense of invitation and she felt immediately at home.  

"Sit, make yourself comfortable.  I'll wake the girls and bring them downstairs."  He turned away and put a foot on the stairs.  Then he paused and glanced back at her.  "And um... don't be surprised if they're a little _grumpy_ at first, okay?"

"Sure.  Thanks for the warning."  Emma smiled and waited until Leo was gone.  Then she got up and browsed through the various family pictures that were propped up here and there.

Pictures were often talismen for families, usually surrounded by auras that Emma could read if concentrating.  A particular picture, however, was surrounded by an easily detectable dark aura of sadness.  She bent down to study it.  There were three girls, one holding a cat - _probably their familiar _- and one... Emma felt a shock course through her body.  One of the girls was the girl she'd seen in her vision.  But the gloom didn't surround her.  It was concentrated on ...

"Prue.  Their older sister.  She was..."  Emma slowly turned.  Leo stood by the foot of the stairs, alone.  She wondered how he knew what she was thinking.

"I can see the auras too," he explained to her unspoken question.  "They're awake.  I explained what I could, so they'll be downstairs in a few minutes."

"Is this one Piper?" Emma asked, pointing to the woman on the left.  Leo nodded, watching her through calm, steady eyes.  His gaze was almost unnerving in its perception.

"She was the one I saw through my meditation," Emma murmured.

"Who did she see?" a feminine voice called down from the top of the stairs.  The voice was followed by three unbrushed, bleary eyed witches as they managed to get down the stairs with as much grace as they could muster at 5 in the morning.  Emma took an involuntary step forward, astonished at how normal and - well - _beautiful_ they were.  She smiled tentatively. 

"I'm Emma.  Thank you so much, I'm sorry I..."

One of the girls waved her apology aside, smiling warmly.  "Don't worry about it.  Demons will strike at any hour," she joked, her voice singsong even though she had just woken up.  "I'm Phoebe by the way.  This is Paige and that's--"

"Piper," Emma interrupted, her eyes wide.

Her eyebrows raised in surprise, Piper smiled briskly and glanced at Leo.  He smiled back at her, as innocently as he could.  

"Yes.  Piper.  Nice to meet you," she said, her tone was not quite so friendly as Phoebe's had been.  "Now, what exactly is going on here... and why are we up at 5 in the morning?" 


	6. Bait

[A/N:  Sorry I've been away from this for so long.  Life swept me up and away from all my writing projects for a while.  Please leave me reviews if you like what you read, thanks!]

Chapter 6:   Bait

          Emma launched immediately into the entire story, careful to mention Jericho's strength and the threat he'd pose to the Charmed Ones eventually if he ever gained her friends' powers.  "We have until ten," she finished quickly, half her mind still whirring with excitement at meeting the three sisters.  

          "Wait a minute."  The youngest sister hadn't spoken until now, but her brow had been creased with thought during the entire story.  "You said this Jericho guy's waiting until ten to kill your friends?  And he won't absorb their powers until after they're dead.  Right?"

          Emma nodded, waiting uncertainly.

          "Well it's obviously a trap," Paige announced, her voice matter-of-fact.  She rose from the couch where the three sisters had all settled and headed into the kitchen.  "We'll have to make a strong vanquishing potion and see if there's anything in the Book about Jericho," she called over her shoulder as she walked away.  "Oh and if there's anything we can do to counteract the Whitelighter ... repellant thing.  Whatever it is."

          A trap?  Confused, Emma looked to the other two sisters for some sort of explanation, but Piper and Phoebe were exchanging equally confused glances.  With an exasperated sigh, Piper heaved herself up from the sofa and went after Paige.

          "Paige," she called.  "_How_ do you know it's a trap?" she asked, planting her hands firmly on the countertop as Paige busily sorted through cabinets for potion ingredients.  She spared a moment to throw Piper a look of disbelief before returning to the cabinets.

          "No wait.  Paige is right," Phoebe said thoughtfully.  "If Jericho was so intent on achieving his new position in the Heirarchy, why would he wait until 10am?"  At this point, Piper's exasperation softened and her expression became equally thoughtful.  And wary.

          "Is there any reason he'd specifically want _you _instead of the two he has?" she asked, turning to face Emma as she found her way to the kitchen with Leo.  "I mean, he probably _knows_ you're not strong enough to take him on alone.  He could overpower you easily."

          Emma winced at the reminder that she wasn't strong enough to handle this demon.  She nodded reluctantly.  It _was_ possible that Jericho had set all this up as a trap, but Emma couldn't believe that.  Not when he held two of the strongest witches she knew.  Why would he do that just to get her?  If there was any reason, it was probably some sort of sick personal agenda.  Personal revenge.  Her anger flared up at the thought.

           "I don't think it's a trap," she announced louder than she'd intended.  Piper and Phoebe turned to look at her.  Even Paige slowed her motions for a moment to glance her way.  "It's like you said Piper. Why would he want to trap me when he's already got _two_ witches?"

          "Maybe he knew you'd go for help.  That you'd even come to us," Phoebe answered, her voice gentle.  "Your friends could be bait for stronger witches."

          Emma didn't like the way this conversation was headed and she still rode the tide of her anger.  Normally she wouldn't have the nerve to raise her voice at the Charmed Ones, but...

          "So... what are you going to do?  Just sit it out?  We have to take the bait, don't we?  These are my friends.  My _best_ friends.  And _I_ got them into this!!"  Emma burst out, realizing a moment too late what she'd just confessed.  Biting her lip and cursing her big mouth, she turned away quickly and walked back into the living room.  Jericho's words echoed in her head.  _You just keep leading me straight to them, don't you?_  She shuddered - not with fear, but with intense hatred.  If she ever got Jericho alone in a room with no magical powers... she'd kick the living shit out of him.  

          "Hey.  You okay?" 

          Emma didn't have to look up to know who belonged to that soft, understanding voice.  Phoebe sat beside her and placed a gentle hand on her arm.  Realizing she had her fists clenched, she forced herself to relax and take a deep breath.  A few moments passed in silence.

          "I'm... sorry," Emma finally breathed.  "It's just that ... I feel so responsible.  He wouldn't have known to take them if I hadn't led him right to them.  It's my fault they're in this mess and I have to get them out."  Another deep breath.  She forced herself to look into Phoebe's eyes.  "I have to be there at ten," she said firmly.  "With or without your help."

          She held Phoebe's gaze for a few seconds, feeling a mutual link between them.  When she looked away, Phoebe sighed quietly and said, "I know.  But we're going to help you _and_ your friends.  You have to trust us."

          Emma nodded.  A knot had tied itself into her stomach though, and it wouldn't go away.  

          "You've dealt with Jericho before, so you know some of his personality right?" Phoebe probed.

          "Right," she whispered, finally feeling the emotional drain from her anger.

          "Would he ever suspect that you'd come to us?  The Charmed Ones?"  

          Emma paused to consider.  In all the times she'd encountered Jericho, there was always a sort of mocking calm about him that she'd never understood.  It finally hit her like a sack of heavy bricks.  He knew she wasn't strong enough for him.  He _knew_.  Just like he knew she'd always come out alone.  Her dumb pride.  He'd always let her get away - but for _what_.  So he could toy with her again.  Laughing at her and her weakness.  And her inability to see her own weakness.  Her anger and her pride, pushing her to do stupid, irrational things.  And him, always with that amused grin.  

          "Hey, hey... are you okay?  You're shaking."

          _Deep breath, in and out.  Have to get control over your emotions._

          "Leo always says we get our powers from our emotions," Phoebe said softly.  Startled, Emma blinked and stared at Phoebe.  For a moment, she thought perhaps the Charmed One had the ability to read minds too... but then she realized she'd been thinking out loud.  And that the room was full again.  Piper, Paige and Leo had joined them.

          "So Jericho thinks you'd come after him alone again," Piper stated, her hands on her hips as she talked her way through the problem.  "But then why _would_ he want to get his hands on you so badly?"  All four pairs of eyes were turned on Emma, all considering.  She looked away uncomfortably.

          "Just how strong _are_ you?" Paige said after a few moments.  "If he's looking to get stronger, then maybe you've got more magical ability than the two of your friends combined.  Or maybe you've got powers that he specifically wants.  What _are_ your powers, by the way?"

          "Umm.. I have two main abilities.  One is sort of an outreaching... and the other was... well..." Emma shrugged uncomfortably, wondering how she could explain having two powers.  Most witches were born with just the one power.  And so had she.  Already the three sisters were exchanging meaningful glances, probably wondering the same thing.  She had to explain herself.  Which meant telling the story of her parents' death.  


	7. Reliving the Past

[A/N:  Hi again!!  Hopefully I'll get some more reviews... We're getting to the action part.  The rest of the story should take maybe three or four more parts.  Thanks for reading!  REVIEW!]

Part 7

          Before she had a chance to begin, a blue shimmer appeared in the middle of the room and materialized into Thomas.  His familiar face and the feel of his presence washed over her in a healing wave.  She jumped up to hug him just as the Charmed Ones jumped _back_ in surprise.

          "Who the--!?" Piper snapped, shooting an irritated glare at Leo.  He smiled apologetically and shrugged.

          "Piper, Paige, Phoebe.  This is my whitelighter, Thomas.  Thomas, the Charmed Ones," Emma introduced quickly.  She saw from the look in Thomas' eyes that something had happened.

          "What is it?" she asked, feeling that knot tighten in her stomach.  Thomas didn't answer, only squeezed her hand before dropping it to reach into his pockets.  He drew out a locket and a badge.  Laurie's locket and Rich's badge.  Emma began to tremble.  

          "They're okay.  Here."  Thomas handed her a letter written in a lazily scrawled hand.  Hands shaking, Emma gripped the letter furiously as she read.

                    _Dearest Emma,_

_                    Your friends are doing just fine.  I know you must be worried - your friend's whitelighter found a nasty surprise I expect.  Don't send your precious Thomas --_ How did he know Thomas' name?! -- _ or he'll get quite a shock as well.  I trust you won't be late for our appointment.  I do so dislike tardiness.  I wouldn't want to be displeased with you Emma.  You've been doing marvelously up until now._

_                                                Regards,_

_                                                Jericho_

          Rage boiled within her - she could hardly keep from screaming.  Keeping her fists clenched tightly and tucked into her body, she sat down on the couch without a word and focused on calming down.  Hard to do when all you could think about was punching a wall through and throwing smash-able things about.

          "The letter's designed to make you angry, Em.  He knows how you'll react instantly in anger.  He's trying to draw you out in a rash move." Thomas spoke quickly, defusing her anger in the best way he knew how - by pulling on her sense of responsibility.  "Calm down.  Meditate.  He wants _you_ and he wants you badly.  Alone."  Already, Emma could feel the anger dissipating.  So he thought he could manipulate her this easily, did he?  Jericho was about to experience the worst sort of surprise.

          "We've figured that much out.  But _why_?" Piper interjected impatiently.  She ignored Phoebe's tsking noise and folded her arms.  "Why is this demon so intent on getting your powers?  And why do you have two?"

          Taking a deep breath, Emma tried to remove herself from her pain as she told the story.  "My parents were both magical.  My mother had a psycho-kinetic ability.  Highly trained, very skilled.  Most women in our family are born with that same ability.  Generation from generation, we're all trained to be very good at manipulating memory and illusion.  Reading minds.  All that type of thing.  My father had power over fire.  He was a fire mage, actually."  This usually produced big reactions from those who knew.  Mages were a rare type, and enormously powerful since they dealt with harnessing the powers of the elements.  Emma went quickly on, not giving them a chance to react with anything other than sharply indrawn breaths.  "My parents were..." her cheeks colored "... killed by a mortal," she finally managed to choke out.  "They walked into the wrong convenience store at the wrong time.  My mother died... instantaneously.  Her whitelighter couldn't orb in to a public place.  I'm not even sure if he could've healed her anyway... since the wound wasn't from fighting demons.  My father..." Emma felt tears sliding down her cheeks.  It was the first time she'd relived the entire thing since it'd happened two years ago.  "He made it to the hospital b-but.. mages don't have whitelighters.  He survived long enough to see me.  He passed his powers to me, I... I don't know how.  It wasn't wiccan.  It was... some ancient magic."  

          Her pulse raced.  Emma could feel the seconds ticking by in silence.  Somewhere deep in her mind, she felt a vague burden lift from within her chest.  She could breathe a little bit easier.

          "No wonder Jericho wants you.  You've got a strong wiccan power along with a firemage's ability inside of you.  With your power, he'd probably be stronger than most in the Heirarchy.  He could become the next Source," Paige breathed.  "We've _got_ to vanquish this guy."  She seemed almost eager to get to it.

          "Who wants to check the book for him?  I'll keep going with the potion.  Leo, Thomas... do you guys think there's any way to get around the whitelighter repellant?"  She hurried back into the kitchen, the whitelighters trailing behind her, deep in discussion.  Thomas glanced back worriedly, but Emma waved a hand at him, smiling weakly.  _Go._  

          Piper and Phoebe glanced at each other, an unspoken message seemed to pass between them.  "I'll take the Book," Piper volunteered.  She turned and disappeared up the stairs.  Emma was vaguely aware that Phoebe was still in the room, but she could spare no thought for her.  She clutched the locket in one hand, the badge in the other.  _Laurie, Rich.  I'm sorry.  I'm such an idiot._  _I'll get you two out of this and never be such a thick hotheaded moron again._  

          "Can I have those for a second?" Phoebe asked, seating herself across from Emma on the coffee table.  "I get premonitions," she explained.

          "Sure," Emma said, clearing her throat.  She handed the two trinkets over to Phoebe who seemed to concentrate over them intently.  She took the time to put her face back in order, wipe tears, and pull her hair back into a ponytail.  

          Suddenly, Phoebe jerked in her seat and took deep gasping breaths.  She nearly dropped the locket, but Emma steadied her with a hand.

          "Are you okay?  What is it?  Did you get a premonition?"  She waited breathlessly.  Phoebe looked up, her eyes wide with worry.

          "I saw you.  Dying."


	8. Deep Breath Before the Plunge

[A/N:  Hey, is anyone still reading this??  Well, I figure I should just finish this one up so I can get to working on my next idea!   Please review, let me know how you like it... The next part should be the last one.  Maybe one more.  Enjoy!]

Part 8:  Deep Breath Before the Plunge

          "W-what?" Emma demanded shakily.  "How?"

          "You were there, alone.  You threw something - a potion - at him and he laughed and threw something at you.  It looked like you were choking or suffocating.  You sank to the ground and I could ... _feel_ ... you dying."  Emma sat back, frightened.  It was one thing to suspect you might die that day.  It was quite another to know it was in your future.

          "Amaethus potion," she said.

          "What?" 

          "Amaethus potion.  It's probably what Jericho threw at me.  He knows I'm half mage.  Amaethus is poisonous to half-mages.  Full mages are born with a sort of immunity, but mixed magical children somehow lose that.  They're more vulnerable to attack."  It was like reciting a lesson her father had drilled into her.  He'd always told her to be prepared for Amaethus potion.  And caught up in the events of the day, she would very likely have forgotten.

          Again, her own idiocy... At least it would only have affected her this time.  No.  Wrong again.  With her dead, who would help Laurie and Rich?

          "It's simple," Emma said, smiling as confidently as she could.  "Just have to prepare.  Thanks for the warning Phoebe."  The other witch did not return her smile.  She only watched her intently for a moment before nodding, relenting.

          "So show me some of your powers," Phoebe suggested lightly.

          Emma glanced around the room and waved her hand to summon a vase.  She floated it to Phoebe and back to its proper place.  A pained smile lit Phoebe's face.

          "Prue's power," she murmured.  Emma pretended not to have heard.  Next, she pointed her finger toward the ceiling and made a circling motion with it.  A small ring of fire appeared above their heads, throwing a flickering orange glow around the room.  Phoebe laughed appreciatively when Emma made the fire ring change shape several times. 

          "And how about illusion?" Phoebe asked.  Smiling, Emma considered briefly.  Then she spun an Illusion as carefully as she could -- a sun-drenched, white sanded beach with clear blue water stretching for miles out to the horizon.  Dolphins, the sun glinting off their backs, leaping through the water.  A soft warm breeze.. bringing with it the smell of salt water and the sound of rustling palm leaves. 

          Leaning back into her couch, Phoebe breathed in deeply and relaxed.  "Mmmm..." she sighed.  "_That_ is one great power," she observed as Emma released the weave and they returned to the Halliwell living room.

          "Thanks, I like it."  Feeling a little at ease for the first time all night, Emma sat back in the couch next to Phoebe.  They were silent for a while, listening to the muffled conversation coming from the kitchen.

          "You're very powerful," Phoebe said.  "And I know you must be worried about tomorrow.  But don't.  With the Power of Three behind you, Jericho's going down.  I promise.  Your friends are going to be okay." 

          Emma couldn't bring herself to face Phoebe because tears were threatening to fill her eyes for the second time that night.  "Thank you," she whispered.

          "Okay, I didn't find Jericho in here, but I DID find something about a whitelighter _block_," Piper announced as she came down the stairs, supporting a huge book in her arms.  Amazed, Emma jerked upright and stared at the Book as Piper plunked it down onto the coffee table.

          "I can't believe it," Emma breathed.  "The Book of Shadows."  Piper and Phoebe looked at each other with strange expressions.

          "Can I touch it?" she continued, unable to take her eyes off the famous book.  She hardly waited for Piper's nod to graze a light finger against the cover of the book.  A tingle ran down her spine.  To think, she was in the same room as the Book of Shadows.  And the Charmed Ones!  If she wasn't so scared, she would've laughed.

          "Well, we know she's not evil," Piper said half-jokingly.  Emma blinked in surprise. 

          "_Ha. Ha._" Phoebe said sarcastically.  "Not funny.  C'mon show us."

          Flipping through the well-worn and yellowed pages, Piper came to stop somewhere toward the middle of the book.  The page she pointed to had a picture of a room with four corners, a purple stone lodged into each corner.  The purple stones set up a forcefield of some sort that whitelighters could not pass through once a spell had been cast along with it.  There was no way to remove the stones without getting inside.  And there was no way to get inside with a whitelighter.

          Emma nearly threw her hands up in frustration, but she realized that neither sister seemed very worried.  Instead, they seemed almost confident in their planning.

          "Am I missing something?" Emma interjected as they discussed Phoebe's premonition and how to strengthen the potion Paige was brewing.  "How are we going to get to Jericho if we can't get inside?"

          "Oh.  Don't worry about that.  It only works on full whitelighters.  Paige is only half.  Her witch-half will get us through.  She can Orb us in and out of there, no problem," Phoebe explained lightly.

          "What?!" Emma exclaimed.  "Then what are we waiting for?!  Why don't we go save Laurie and Rich right now?  We can just Orb in, grab them, and Orb right out again!"  Emma was frantic.  "What's the problem!?" she demanded when the two sisters hesitated.  "Don't you want to save them?"

          "Yes, yes.  Of course we want to save them," Piper said testily.  "Will you relax?"

          Phoebe shot her another glare.  Piper widened her eyes innocently and asked, "What?!"

          "Look, Emma.  We do want to save your friends, we really do.  But we also want to vanquish Jericho.  If we just saved your friends and left, he'd come after you again.  Or someone else.  Eventually, he'll become stronger and we'll have to fight him.  Unless we take him out now."  Phoebe paused, waiting for some reaction out of Emma.

          "So you're using my friends as bait.  He's using them to bait _me_.  And now you're using them to bait _him_."

          "Not exactly," Piper said brazenly.  "We're going to use _you_, since you're the one he really wants."

          "Piper!  Will you just--!" Phoebe stood up and stamped her foot.  "What is _wrong_ with you?!"

          "What!" Piper demanded, her expression half apologetic but half determined.  "She needs our help.  We're helping her!  She needs a demon vanquished.  Well, this is the way to vanquish him.  IS there a problem?"

          "YES, there's a problem!  They're almost like innocents at this point.  You don't treat innocents like this," Phoebe argued.  "We can't put Emma in danger _too_, she could get killed."

          Emma winced, knowing how possible that could be.

          "Wha-- how do you know that.  She'll be fine!  We'll be there, don't worry!" Piper pushed on, her arms folded across her chest.

          "Piper, I had a really bad premonition!  I don't think Emma should go in there."  That gave Piper a bit of a pause.  But she still pressed on.

          "You get your premonitions so we can work around them, you know that.  We can take precautions, but this is the only way that'll work.  Emma goes in with Paige, finds Jericho and distracts him while we find Laurie and Rich and get them out of there.  Then, Leo will orb in and take them away and we'll get Jericho with the potion from behind."

          "So while we're rescuing Laurie and Rich, we're leaving Emma and Paige to fend off Jericho all alone?!  I just can't see that working--"

          "Um, excuse me but..." Emma stood up and waited for both sisters to turn to her.  "Well, why not use my powers?  Paige can Orb me into his lair and I can set up an illusion that he's surrounded by witches.  That'll keep Jericho busy. Don't worry," Emma said quickly to override Phoebe's protest.  "He's about as strong as I am, but I'll keep him occupied for a few minutes at least.  Then you can come in behind him and throw the potion or say the spell.  Whatever it takes."

          "No need for a spell.  If this potion doesn't vanquish him, nothing will."  Paige strode into the room, a triumphant smile on her face.

          With a slight shake of her head, Piper filled in her youngest sister and the whitelighters.  The two sisters disappeared into the kitchen for a few minutes and returned, smiling in satisfaction.  Meanwhile, Phoebe held up a page with a hastily scrawled spell.

          "A Power of Three spell," she explained.  "Just in case."

          The four witches and the two whitelighters stood facing each other for a moment, all readying themselves.

          "What time is it?" Piper asked, glancing at the clock as she spoke.

          "Eight o'clock," Leo answered.

          "Let's surprise him by coming early." Paige grinned. 


	9. First Onslaught

[A/N: I've decided to finish all my projects, no matter how slapdash :) Hopefully this one isn't too bad.

Part 9

As the blue lights swirled away from them, the sisters crouched down quickly behind a large stack of plastic, industrial-sized barrels. Grabbing Emma's shirt, Paige yanked her down to join them and shushed her protests.

"What are you doing, trying to get us killed?" Paige hissed, motioning for Emma to stay down.

"My illusion," Emma began, but Paige interrupted.

"Let's get our bearings first, how about that?" she quipped. Piper shot them both sharp looks, making Paige shrug guiltily. Phoebe and Piper were peering carefully through the spaces between the barrels that hid them from view. After a moment, however, they exchanged glances and stood up.

"Are we in the right place?" Piper asked, her voice no longer hushed. Paige and Emma stood as well, taking in their surroundings. They were in a giant, dark warehouse basement, with stacks and stacks of plastic barrels along the walls. The center of the basement was clear and completely… empty.

"349 Jones Square Plaza. Basement," Emma said, looking to Paige.

"We're in the right place," Paige muttered, "I think you're forgetting the part where this is probably a trap."

"Stay back," Phoebe told Emma, preventing her from moving forward. Emma resisted. "Look, he's after YOU. I know you want to help your friends, but you're not going to do that by handing yourself over to Jericho." Phoebe's voice softened and her hand rested gently on Emma's arm. "Remember my premonition. We don't want to lose you while we're saving your friends."

Emma nodded, her pulse racing. She felt utterly useless – something she wasn't used to feeling, but she knew Phoebe was right. Her illusion power was what would help them, once Jericho showed up, and the only way she could help the sisters was to remain safe.

Clutching the potion vials, the sisters stepped closer to the center of the room, determined to spring the trap set for Emma.

A sudden clatter sounded from the opposite side of the room. The sisters quickened their step, but before they could approach, the stack of barrels on that side of the room came crashing down on them. Emma lost sight of the sisters, but she saw something else that caught her attention. Behind the stack of barrels that had just fallen were Laurie and Rich, tied up and unconscious, lying huddled on the floor.

"LAURIE! RICH!" Without thinking, Emma surged out from her hiding spot and rushed toward her friends, stumbling over barrels and keeping an eye out for any of the sisters at the same time.

"Ah, hello, my dear." Before she could react, Jericho appeared from behind her and smoothly put an arm around her neck, tightening his grip just short of choking her. Her heart seized up and plummeted down to her feet.

"Thank you for bringing me the Charmed Ones," his polished accent breathed into her ear. Her fury roiled within her, and she concentrated on creating the illusion they'd agreed on. Fitting it flawlessly into the seam of reality, Emma projected an illusion of the Charmed Ones emerging unharmed from the midst of the fallen barrels. Illusion-Piper rose up, her eyes flashing, her steady grip still tight around the potion vial. She raised her arm to throw the potion, and Jericho laughed.

"That's barely worth my time, Emma. Don't you think I know you well enough by now to expect your illusions?"

"You don't know me," Emma snarled. Releasing her illusion, she struggled to turn toward her friends. "If you've hurt them, I swear I won't rest until you're vanquished."

Jericho chuckled. "It's always the same with you do-gooders, vowing to fight the righteous fight, exacting revenge on us baddies." His words dripped with disdain. "Don't you ever get tired of the cliches?"

"Like this one?" Piper's voice called out. Emma looked just in time to see a vial of potion sailing toward them and flinch back. She heard Paige's voice call, "EMMA!" and a tremendous explosion. Then nothing.

Opening her eyes, she realized she was back on the other side of the room. Paige had called for her and orbed her to safety. But something was wrong. For one thing, Piper and Phoebe were crouched over a shape on the floor. Jericho couldn't have survived the blast, could he? But when Emma took a step forward, she realized with growing panic what had happened.

Paige was sprawled on the floor, gasping and wheezing for breath. There was another shattered vial at her feet, and the swirling mass of gray smoke issuing from the vial was being sucked into Paige's lungs.

"Paige!" Piper's face had gone white, and she was clutching at her sister's hand. "Breathe, _breathe_!"

"Piper, we need to get her out of here," Phoebe was saying. Gazing around distractedly, she muttered, "Where's Jericho?" But Piper's focus was completely centered on her little sister's struggling breaths. Emma felt her stomach contract with fear and panic. The anger was muted into a tight knot beneath the waves of panic.

"Quick," she yelled. "While Jericho's not here!" She rushed toward a corner of the room, looking for the crystals that would have set up the whitelighter block. Before she took two steps, a shimmer in the air materialized into Jericho's smug face. He smashed the Amatheus potion at her feet, releasing another swirl of gray smoke. Having taken the protection potion, Emma fearlessly powered through the gray smoke and hurled a line of fire at him. Eyes widening in surprise, Jericho shimmered out before the fire hit him.

"I'll keep him distracted!" Emma shouted, "Find the crystal and move it so Thomas can get in here!" She hoped one of the sisters took heed, even as she rushed toward the limp bodies on the concrete floor.

"Laurie?" She placed a hand on her friend's plump cheek and breathed a sigh of relief. Warmth. A gentle touch on Rich's face showed that he was alive as well.

"LEO! LEO!" A musical shimmer sounded, as Leo and Thomas both orbed in.

"Get her out of her," Piper said. "Try to heal her. Do anything, keep her alive until we get back." His face tight with worry, he nodded and orbed Paige out.

"Thomas!" Emma's whitelighter rushed over and knelt beside her. "They're barely alive. Get them out of here."

"What about you? How will you get back without Paige?" he asked.

"I'll call. JUST GO!" He shimmered out without another word.

Turning, Emma rushed to join Piper and Phoebe, tears threatening to spill over onto her cheeks.

"I'm so sorry, I never thought to extend the protection to Paige! I thought only half-mages were vulnerable, not _all_ mixed magical beings! I'm so, so sorry."

Piper and Phoebe exchanged another look, and Piper sighed at Phoebe's reproachful expression. "It's okay, it's not your fault. Let's just vanquish him and get out of here as soon as we can."

"Where… is he?" Phoebe asked, suddenly suspicious. "Why wouldn't he attack while we were distracted?"

"I have a better question for you – how did he know to have TWO vials of the Amatheus potion ready? And how did he protect himself from a Power of Three spell?" Piper asked testily. Emma hadn't even heard them use the Power of Three spell.

"He must've been expecting us," Phoebe ventured. "Look, if he's gone, we should go back home and figure out how to fix this. At least we've saved our innocents. We can regroup at the manor and figure out how to vanquish Jericho from there."

"You're right," Piper said, clearly anxious to return home and see to Paige. "That okay with you?" she snapped at Emma.

"Yeah, definitely," she agreed fervently. "And Laurie and Rich could probably help us too."

"Greaaat. Leo!" A blue nimbus immediately shimmered in, and Leo looked around expectantly.

"Did you take care of him?" he asked.

"No, he's scampered off for now," Piper retorted. "Get us home to Paige."

Joining hands with the sisters, Emma felt the slight pull of the blue nimbus as the orb began to take her. Suddenly, something roughly jerked her out of the circle and wrenched her away from orb. Falling to the ground, she just saw the orb disappear without her before her head hit the floor and everything went black.


	10. The Brilliant Plan

Part 10

"What the hell happened?" Piper yelped when they had landed back at the Manor. All three of them had felt the forceful disruption of their orb. "Why did she do that?" she asked, immediately suspicious.

"Honey, I don't think she did it. She wanted to see her friends just as badly as we wanted to see Paige," Phoebe answered. "It must've been Jericho. He's got her."

"Jericho's got Emma?!" an unfamiliar voice asked, "Why did you leave her?!"

Piper and Phoebe turned to face the source of the voice, a young woman lying propped up by pillows on their sofa.

"You must be Laurie," Phoebe said. "We're—"

"The Charmed Ones, I know."

"Well good," Piper said wryly. "We didn't _leave_ her. She was snatched out of the orb." But she barely glanced at the stranger. "Where's Paige?" she asked Leo.

He shrugged helplessly. "She's… not doing well, Piper. We need Emma to brew the antidote potion."

Piper took this calmly on the surface, but when she spoke, her voice was tight with suppressed emotion. "Where is she."

"In the conservatory," he said gently. Piper rushed out of the room, leaving everyone behind.

"Leo?" Phoebe asked, afraid. His compassionate gaze only made her feel worse. She could hear Piper's murmuring voice from the conservatory.

"Laurie!" she said, whirling to face the woman who was now struggling to sit up. "Are you familiar with the Amatheus potion? Do you know the antidote?!"

"I'm afraid not. I'm sorry." Laurie, looking pale and tired, glanced at Thomas as he healed Rich. The golden glow faded, but Rich continued in deep slumber. "We have to help Emma. We would've been dead if it weren't for her."

"Yeah, that's what I'm wondering. Why aren't you dead? Why did he keep you alive?" Phoebe crouched down beside Laurie, focusing intently on this woman's troubled eyes. "He wanted Emma's powers, but why didn't he take yours while he was at it?"

Laying a hand on Laurie's wrist, Phoebe tried to will herself to get a premonition, but nothing happened.

Laurie sat still, contemplating the answer. "If Jericho's one thing, it's conceited. He always thinks he's going to outsmart his opponents. He can't even imagine the possibility that he'd lose.. One good thing that leads to? He talks."

Standing up, Laurie paced in front of the fireplace. "He said something I didn't quite understand. Something… something about another enemy. It made it sound like all this was just a way to get power for some other battle he's planning."

"It just doesn't make sense," she continued. "We've been tracking him for so long, and he's always avoided us. Like we weren't worth the trouble, although we knew better. He was afraid what coming up against us would prove to him. That maybe he wouldn't win for once. That maybe we were evenly matched."

"But why come after us now? And why not absorb our powers?"

"Maybe he really did just want you as bait, and he didn't think it was worth it to absorb your powers. If he's really as conceited as you say, that could be his downfall," Phoebe mused. A thought occurred to her, and suddenly she was certain of it.

"He was after _us_."

"Sorry?"

"He's not after you. Or Emma. He wants US. Charmed power." Phoebe rose from her perch on the arm of the sofa. "You said there was another battle he was fighting? What against?"

"I can't remember. It was something demonic. Something…" Laurie paused in her pacing, thinking hard.

During the silence, Piper strode purposefully into the room, her face even more closed up than usual. Phoebe walked up to her and put a consoling arm around her sister's shoulders.

"How is she?" she asked softly.

"Not good," Piper answered. "She's having real trouble breathing. It's like that gray smoke is blocking something, and nothing we do is helping." Leo walked in behind Piper, his hands in his pockets.

"We need the antidote," he said.

"Which means…" Piper began.

"We need Emma," Phoebe finished.

"The Triad." Laurie whispered.

Three pairs of eyes all turned to stare at her, incredulously.

"The… Triad?" they asked, stunned. Phoebe took a step toward Laurie, unconsciously. "The Triad? Are you sure that's what he said?"

"He said they were coming back, and he needed great power to fight them," Laurie continued, as her memory filled in the gaps. She stopped when she saw the trepidation on their faces.

"What's wrong? Is it bad?"

The sisters were silent for a moment. Phoebe and Piper looked at each other.

"It doesn't matter. We'll deal with it later," Piper said resolutely. "We need to vanquish Jericho, find Emma and get her back here so she can save Paige."

"Right." Phoebe nodded in agreement, but her expression betrayed her anxiety.

The preparation for the vanquishing was hurried and efficient. As Piper brewed a stronger potion, Phoebe and Laurie scryed for wherever Jericho had gone next.

"This time, we know he's waiting for us. The Charmed Ones. We have to come at him from an angle he really won't expect."

"How can we use his weaknesses against him? His arrogance?"

"I've got an idea," Phoebe ventured. "Piper, how's that potion coming?"

"I'm just about done. I just need to put it into the vials and.."

"Don't put it into vials," Phoebe interrupted.

The scrying crystal snapped to a point on the map.

A cloud of toxic fumes rose up from the geyser in the corner of the room. Struggling against the magical ropes binding her, Emma grimaced at the stinging vapor that filled the room momentarily.

"Why don't you just take my powers and be done with it, Jericho!?" she growled, furious. She cried out in sheer frustration as he continued to ignore her.

"As charming as I find that little noise you're making, would you mind keeping it down?" he said, not his usually smooth self. In fact, his face was showing signs of strain, and he was definitely not as self-possessed as usual. Emma wondered what was bothering him, and if she could make it worse.

"What's wrong?" she yelled, trying to distract him into frustration. "You weren't expecting to lose Laurie and Rich? Didn't think the sisters would be as powerful as they were? Huh?!"

"Shut. Up." He said under his breath, concentrating on something he was mixing on a ledge on the far side of the cavern.

"Nice place you got here," Emma continued. "Why does it smell like SHIT?"

He whirled around, fury tightly controlled, and strode closer until he was standing within spitting distance.

"If you don't give me a few moments of silence, I may decide it's not worth it to keep you alive any longer. I advise you to be as quiet as you can possibly be."

"You knew I'd involve the Charmed Ones," Emma said, ignoring his warning. His lips thinned as he frowned with nothing more than mild displeasure! "Why didn't you attack while they were distracted? You could've done it then."

"Do you really think I'm going to commit the classic villain mistake and go into a monologue with you?" He seemed amused.

"No. Just curious," she muttered. "Besides, you were prepared enough to have two Amatheus potions. Why give up the opportunity you created for yourself?"

His eyes narrowed. "Surely you don't think I was really after your powers? I don't need pathetic witch powers to amplify my own. I've plenty of power for myself."

He turned away and returned to his mixing.

"They'll be here soon, you know. You better get that potion ready quick." She waited another moment. "You let them go, didn't you? Nothing else makes sense. You wanted to hurt Paige, but let the other sisters leave with her. Why?"

His shoulders tightened, but he continued to ignore her.

"Why are you using potions, oh powerful demon? Why not fireballs? Energy balls? You're an upper level demon. Why are you mixing potions? And where did you steal those recipes from?"

"I didn't STEAL them!" he shouted, his cool façade finally cracking. Emma had managed to get herself into a sitting position. Tied up and helpless as she was, recognizing that he was not going to actually kill her, she felt her anger drain away and leave her feeling empty and … yes, scared.

"Then how did you get those potion ingredients? Why are you using witch-magic, if you say you don't want witch powers?" she pressed on relentlessly, now because she actually WAS curious. He stiffened under her calm glare, meeting her second for second.

She saw something visibly shift within him. And then he sighed and muttered something unintelligible.

"What?" When he said nothing, she continued to press. "You didn't hurt Laurie and Rich, either. You had the opportunity to do it, but you didn't. You knew Thomas could heal them. What's behind all this? What big plan are you orchestrating!?"

"I'm half an inch away from killing you," he growled.

"No, you're not. You know what? I don't think you ever intended to actually hurt any one of us. It was all an elaborate set up. Why?"

Silence.

"WHY?!" she yelled.

"I'm HALF-WITCH!" he shouted, so loudly that the echo reverberated throughout the cavern and shook the walls.

Stunned, Emma sat in silent contemplation of the half-demon, half-witch before her.

"What?" she breathed.

"I'm half witch," he answered, breathing heavily, his shoulders hunched in a defensive pose. He had finished mixing whatever he was mixing, and now clutched the vial in his hand.

"How…"

"My mother was a witch," he said shortly, every word sounded like it was being pulled forcibly from him. But he kept going, now that the floodgates were opened, he would finally open up to one person. The most unlikely of persons.

"She fell in love a demon. My father," he said quietly, breathing laboriously.

"What happened to them?" Emma asked, not quite sure what the swirl of emotions she was experiencing consisted of.

"He killed her," Jericho said, turning abruptly to face the ledge. "He was a demon. What could you expect from a demon?" He seemed almost to be pleading with her. When those words hit the air between them – _He Killed Her_ – Emma felt something grip her heart like a vice. Pity? Sympathy? No. Empathy. She knew what it was like to be an orphan, a product of a magical family. Left without guidance. But that his father had _killed_ his mother… and to deal with having that demon side of your father residing within…

"So why… why all this? And why now?" Emma pressed gently.

He turned to face her, and she was stunned to see tears filling his eyes. She could hardly believe how human his emotions seemed to her, and how open his expression was.

"I don't want to struggle anymore." He seemed broken now, admitting this to himself for the first time, as well as to her. "Can you imagine what it must be like?!" he demanded, suddenly angry. "The war of good versus evil. ALWAYS. In here," he pounded a fist to his chest. "It's enough to drive anyone crazy. But one of the Charmed Ones has experience in this. She vanquished a half-demon/half-human before. She can do it again. She has to." He seemed desperate.

It dawned on Emma what he meant. And words she would NEVER have believed she'd EVER say… came out of her mouth.

"No, Jericho. You don't have to die."

He looked at her, such a mixture of self-loathing and suppressed rage and confusion in his expression. She opened her mouth to speak again, when golden lights shimmered in the air and Phoebe, Piper, and Laurie materialized between them.

It all happened too quickly.

Phoebe cried, "NOW!" and they threw potion vials at Jericho. He lifted his own potion vial and threw it at his own feet. A plume of blue smoke rose from the ground and consumed him. The sisters' potion struck the plume of blue smoke and disintegrated, useless. The blue smoke dissipated, and Jericho stood before them, grinning smugly. No one had any potion vials left, and to the untrained eye, it looked like the battle was over. Stalemated, again.

But Emma saw the sheer desperation in his eyes. The deadened hope. He had pushed them to use their strongest potion. The very strongest. _He was expecting their next move._

At the very last moment, she saw Phoebe reach up for the crystal dangling around her neck. It wasn't a crystal. It was a miniature flask full of green potion.

"NO, WAIT!" she cried, something inexplicably pulling at her from within. _Help him. He's an innocent. What? He's a demon! Only half._ None of it mattered.

Phoebe hurled the potion at Jericho's feet, creating an explosion that rocked the very earth beneath their feet. Thrown to the ground, with debris raining down on them, the entire cavern shook and shuddered for several minutes.

When Emma looked up, it was to a darkened scorchmark on the ground where Jericho had been standing. She choked back a sob, and was unable to speak.

"Come on, quick!" Piper undid the bindings holding her in place and called for Leo. Shimmering out of the cavern, Emma's eyes lingered on the blackened scorchmark until it faded out of sight.


End file.
